Bandy and Ice Hockey in the Netherlands (1890-1945)
Bandy History The sport of bandy was first introduced to the Netherlands during the harsh winter season of 1890-91 by William Johan Herman (Pim) Mulier, an avid sportsman who spearheaded the development of multiple sports in the country. Mulier, who had spent time studying in England, was friends with Charles Goodman Tebbutt, the captain of the venerable Bury Fen Bandy Club. On January 3, 1891, after prior discussions with Mulier, Tebbutt and his Bury Fen Bandy Club departed from Harwich, en route to the Netherlands via boat. Mulier wished for Bury Fen to play three exhibition bandy matches, in order to acquaint the locals with the sport. The first game was staged in Haarlem on January 5, with Bury Fen taking on the IJsclub Haarlem en Omstreken (Ice Club Haarlem and surroundings). Mulier played for Haarlem. The English side won by a convincing margin of 14-1. Bury Fen's latter two matches were played in Amsterdam; the first pitting them against a local selection Amsterdamsche IJsclub (bolstered by Mulier) and the second featuring a rematch against Haarlem. The Dutch were again defeated by the English in both matches, but despite the losses, the early seeds for the development of the sport had been sewn. On January 28, 1892, the Amsterdamsche Hockey & Bandy Club (AH&BC) was established. Other clubs including the Leeuwarder Bandy Club in Leeuwarden, the Bolswarder Bandy Club in Bolswald, the Thialf IJs-Kolfvereniging in Heerenveen, and the Zwolsche Atletische Club in Zwolle soon sprung up. Tebbutt and Mulier arranged for Bury Fen Bandy Club to embark on a second tour of the Netherlands in the winter of 1892-93. The Dutch were much more successful against the English side this time, with the Haarlem squad defeating the English with an emphatic 8-0 victory. The first unofficial Dutch Championship in bandy was held during the winter of 1895. Teams from Amsterdam, Haarlem, Zwolle, and Delft competed in the championship. Haarlem was crowned champions. The Amsterdamsche Courant of January 19, 1897, reported that a match between Hockey en Bandyclub Haarlem en Omstreken and a team of Amsterdam students had taken part on the previous Sunday. The same paper reported on January 23 that the Amsterdamsche Hockey & Bandy Club had created a junior department for those under 18. A central governing body for the sport was formed with the creation of the Nederlandsche Hockey en Bandy Bond on October 8, 1898. The Haagsche Hockey en Bandy Club won the first official Dutch Championship in 1899. The Boek de sporten published a chapter on the sport in 1900. In 1901, the Dutch played their first international bandy matches in Davos, Switzerland. Between 1901 and 1905, Haarlem competed in the Davos International Bandy Tournament every year. The 1905 tournament also served as the European Championship. Although bandy was played in 1908 and 1909, a string of mild winters in the Netherlands caused the sport to die out in the country. Teams Results Ice Hockey History After bandy had faded in the Netherlands, a series of ice hockey (although it was still often referred to as "bandy") matches were arranged in January 1929 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the IJsclub Haarlem en Omstreken. Two teams from Antwerp, Belgium, played a demonstration match against one another as part of the festivities on January 13. A tournament was also staged in Baarn on the same day. H.H.Y.C. Den Haag was founded in 1933. On April 16, a general meeting was held in The Hague, where a board was elected. On December 6, 1933, the Haarlemsche Courant reported a match having taken place between two school teams of the Haarlemsche IJsclub. On the same day, the Haagsche Courant referenced a training match between two H.H.Y.C. Den Haag sides. On January 5, 1934, H.H.Y.C. played its first international match in Antwerp against a Belgian opposition. IJsclub Haarlem en Omstreken also organized tournaments for schoolchildren in 1933. The Netherlands Ice Hockey Association (Nederlandse IJshockey Bond) was founded on September 6, 1934, as the successor to the Nederlandse Hockey en Bandy Bond. It later joined the LIHG in 1935. A.IJ.H.C. Amsterdam participated in the 1934 Brussels Tournament while the city of Amsterdam hosted a tournament at its newly-opened ice rink on December 8 and 9, 1934. The first opening match at the rink had been held on November 24. Rinks later opened in The Hague and Tilburg. On December 20, 1935, an ice hockey club was founded in Amerfoot. Hockey also soon spread to the cities of Alkmaar, Bilthoven, Bussum, Doorn, Heiloo, Naarden and Rotterdam. On January 27, 1936, a youth league containing six to seven teams was announced. Teams were to come from Amsterdam, The Hague, Haarlem, Leiden and Naarden. The Lippens Beker, a multi-national competition also known as the North West European Cup, featuring a rotating schedule which featured some matches in Amsterdam, was held for the first time during the 1936-37 season. The following year, the national Dutch competition for the Nestor Beker was staged. It was won by Den Haag in 1938 and Amsterdam in 1939. No national Dutch competition was played in 1940, although an Inter Urban League was staged between Dutch and Belgian teams. During World War II, hockey was played during the winters of 1941 and 1942, but the sport then went on hiatus until 1945. It was decided it was too dangerous to play against teams with Jewish players. H.H.Y.C. Den Haag's home rink was closed and the team was only able to play away games. As some members of A.IJ.H.C. Amsterdam adhered to fascist ideology, Ijsvogels Amsterdam was created by players loyal to their homeland. The city of Tilburg was liberated from the Nazis on October 27, 1944. The Canadian troops stationed there soon became aware of the local ice rink and, upon finding it damaged, had new piping imported from France. The first matches in the Netherlands since 1942 were played in Tilburg in January 1945. They all involved various Canadian service branches either playing against one another or the local T.IJ.S.C. Tilburg squad. The Dutch Championship was set up for the 1945-46 season, which marked the first full season of hockey in the Netherlands since 1939. Teams The following teams were founding members of the Netherlands Ice Hockey Association: *IJsclub Haarlem en Omstreken. *Nieuwe 's-Gravenhaagsche IJsvereeniging. *Gooische Hockey en Bandy Club. *Enschedeesche Hockey en Bandy Club. *P.W. de IJsclub Kralingen. *Amsterdamsche IJsclub. *Haagsche Hockey en IJshockey Club. *Schiedamsche IJshockeyclub de Pinguins. *Amsterdamsche IJshockey Club. *Leidsche Studenten IJsclub. *N.V. Sportfondsen Bad afdeling Kunstijsbaan te Amsterdam. Results ;1929 (*These matches were part of the tournament in Baarn.) ;1932-33 See: 1933 Anton Beynes Beker, 1933 Louis Bijvoet Beker (January). ;1933-34 See also: 1933 Louis Bijvoet Beker, played in Haarlem on December 17, 1933. ;1934-35 See also: 1934 Brussels Tournament, 1934 Amsterdam Tournament, 1934-35 International Club Matches. ;1935-36 These matches were part of the Interville Cup international tournament. Games were played in Brussels and Amsterdam. The Blue Six withdrew on January 21, 1936. See also: 1935-36 International Club Matches. ;1937-38 The November 4 game between Blauw (blue) and Wit (white) was a demonstration match. The games on March 30 were part of the Haarlemsche IJsclub Beker. See also: 1937 St. Moritz Tournament, 1938 Dutch Cup, 1937-38 Lippens Beker, 1937-38 International Club Matches. ;1938-39 The matches on December 26, 1938, were part of the N.IJ.B. Propaganda Tour. The Anton Beynes Beker, held in Haarlem, was won by Kennemer Lyceum over M.T.S. See also: 1938 Louis Bijvoet Beker, 1939 Dutch Cup, 1938-39 Lippens Beker, 1938-39 International Club Matches. ;1939-40 ''The matches between A.IJ.H.C. and Blue Six Amsterdam held between January 21 and February 4 were part of the Zilveren Molen competition. Blue Six won the final game. See also: 1940 Anton Beynes Beker, 1939-40 Inter Urban League. ;1940-41 The match on January 12 was for the F.W. Haagen Wisselbeker. *Indicates match was played as part of the Nestor Beker "A" competition. **Indicates a Nestor Beker "B" match. Games played on January 20 and February 2 involving Arnhem, Nijmegen, Zutphen, and Deventer were part of the Eastern Competition - administered by the N.IJ.B. See also: 1940-41 International Club Matches, 1941 International Week of Winter Sports. ;1941-42 See also: 1942 Sports Day in Den Haag Tournament. ;1944-45 Photographs Haarlem 1891.jpg|The Haarlem club during the 1890-91 season. First Hockey Ned.jpg|The first ice hockey match in the Netherlands - January 9, 1929. Notes 1. Delftsche never showed up to the match. 2. Match was also reported as 8-4 score. References *Nico Groen - Dutch Hockey Archives *TYSC Trappers History Site * *''Amsterdamsche Courant'' newspaper *''Algemeen Handelsblad'' newspaper Category:History